Page 68 of Find Me
Colt and Creed weren’t happy. They’d become two glaring statues who appeared to be moments away from maiming Keelan.
Keelan smirked. “You get her all the time. Learn to share.”
Knox rolled his eyes and pressed play on the remote to the TV. The show began to play and Colt and Creed still hadn’t stopped glaring in our direction.
“I don’t know how I feel about this,” Colt grumbled and looked to Creed.
“He’s not going to bite her. Let it go and watch the TV,” Knox said.
I felt the strong urge to go over there and sit by them, but Keelan was my friend, too. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings either. It wasn’t until Colt and Creed eventually focused on the show that I could relax and finally dig into the popcorn.
About halfway through our second episode I was fighting to keep my eyes open. “Why don’t you lie down?” Keelan whispered.
I shook my head to refuse, but I could already feel him lifting me up and laying me down on the couch. “Don’t let me fall asleep,” I mumbled. I felt fingers brush some hair away from my forehead before I gave up the fight and fell asleep.
* * *
“Shiiiii…llooooohh! Come out, come out wherever you are!” Mr. X shouted from another room. My heart was racing, and my inner arm was bleeding where Mr. X had cut me. Blood dripped from my fingers as my arm dangled at my side limply, leaving a bloody trail in my wake as I quietly snuck through the house in the dark. Dashing into the kitchen, I scooped up one of the kitchen towels hanging in front of the oven. Biting my lip to keep myself from crying out, I wrapped the towel around my arm. I made quick work of my makeshift bandage and moved on. I couldn’t linger or he’d find me. I needed to get out of here and get help. I clung to a sliver of hope that I could still save Shayla.
Moving as quickly and silently as possible, I headed for the back door just off the dining room. Every window I had tried had been nailed shut. I couldn’t give up. Reaching out for the gold door knob, I turned it. The door wouldn’t budge. “No!” I whispered as I tried to slam my body against it. It wouldn’t budge. I had no choice but to move on.
“Shiloh,” a voice whispered from behind me.
My heart accelerated to a speed so fast, I was afraid it’d give out. Panting, I turned to find Mr. X right behind me. I screamed as loud as my lungs would allow, hoping the neighbors would hear, and fell backward to the floor.
The drop to the floor was short and I landed on carpet. We didn’t have carpet in the dining room. I didn’t have time to stop and think about that as I scrambled to my feet. I took off running the moment I was off the floor, but something strange happened. I wasn’t even in the dining room anymore. I was in the living room on the other side of the house. The room where both of my parents had been murdered. My dad’s corpse was still sprawled out on the couch and my mom was still dead on the floor where I had watched Mr. X stab her repeatedly. “How did I get here?”
“Shi?” a muffled voice called out to me. I turned to search for the voice. There wasn’t anyone there. My family’s living room blurred out for a second, revealing a different living room—one with a huge sectional couch facing a monstrously large entertainment center.
I knew that living room.
“Shiloh?” a different but just as muffled voice said. I turned my head again and saw Knox standing by the entertainment center. Then my family’s living room returned. Knox and I were both standing in the darkness with my parents’ bodies a handful of feet away. Knox regarded me with caution and worry in his eyes. I didn’t understand why he was here, and I didn’t have time to find out.
“I need to get help,” I whispered as I stepped closer to him. “We need to get out of here before he finds us.”
Knox’s brows furrowed.
“I don’t think she’s fully awake,” another muffled voice said. I had to ignore it because we didn’t have time to just stand here. If we lingered here, Mr. X would find us.
I stepped toward Knox and grabbed his wrist. I tugged a little, trying to get him to move, but he wouldn’t budge. “He’s somewhere in the house. If we stay here, we will die. We have to get help,” I said and tugged some more.
The result was the same. He didn’t budge. “Who’s in the house?” he asked.
“Who the hell cares?! We need to wake her up,” a voice argued, and it was clear this time. Not that it mattered.
“Please,” I begged. “Shayla is still upstairs. She’s dying. If we don’t get help right now, she won’t make it.”
Knox’s expression changed from confusion to what looked like sadness.
I didn’t understand why he wasn’t moving, and I couldn’t leave him behind. I couldn’t let anyone else die. “Please, Knox. We have to go get help.” I tugged on him again with all my strength. I got him to move one step before he yanked his wrist free and grabbed mine instead.
He then tried to pull me toward him. “Shiloh.”
I resisted. “Please!” I pleaded loudly as tears pooled in my eyes. “If I don’t get help in time, she will die. Please help me, Knox. Please! If she dies, I’ll be all alone! I don’t want to be alone! Please, don’t make me be alone!” I cried as I screamed at him. Sobs ripped out of me and there was nothing I could do to stop them. His eyes were wide as I fell apart in front of him. My knees gave out and I crumpled to the floor. At that point I didn’t care anymore. I wanted to give up. If Mr. X came in and killed me right now, so be it. I had no more fight left.
Knox knelt in front of me and pulled me into his arms. I climbed into his lap, wrapped my arms around his neck, and buried my face into his shoulder. My whole body shook as I cried and that just made him tighten his arms around me.
“Fuck,” someone cursed.